Parental safety concerns – a barrier to sport and physical activity in children?

Abstract

Objective: To examine the extent to which parents and carers perceive injury and safety risks as serious enough to prevent or discourage their children, aged 5-12 years, from participating in sports/physical activity and to identify factors that influence these because of injury and safety concerns. In boys, the most frequently discouraged spor t was rugby league (23.2%), followed by rugby union (7.5%) and Australian rules football (2.8%). Among girls, the most frequently discouraged activities were rollerblading (2.7%), rugby league (2.3%) and soccer (2.1%). Multivariate analysis shows that factors independently associated with parents' decision to prevent/discourage their child from engaging in sport/physical activity include their child's age and gender, language spoken at home, presence of disability, and the respondent's relation to the child. Conclusions and implications:Efforts need to be made to modify some sports/ activities, such as football codes, in order to minimise injury and to ensure that children continue enjoying their favourite activity well into adulthood. Guidelines designed to promote physical activity among children and young adolescents need to take into account parental concerns regarding the associated risk of injury.

Epidemiology of Injury in Elite English Schoolboy Rugby Union: A 3-Year Study Comparing Different Competitions

“…6 Injury surveillance investigating the nature of injuries sustained at the community level of men's rugby union has also been ongoing since 2009. 7 Unfortunately, no longitudinal injury surveillance is currently underway for youth rugby in England despite the concerns of parents 8 and health care professionals 9 regarding game safety. Based on the studies carried out in youth rugby, the injury risk (16-49/1000 player-hours) does not appear to be as great as the rate in the professional game.…”

Parental Factors That Influence Swimming in Children and Adolescents

“…Parents who were afraid that their child would be injured during sport or physical activity were more likely to discourage their child from participating in that sport/physical activity, thus leading to lower levels of physical activity (Boufous et al, 2004;Telford et al, 2012). Introducing strategies to reduce fear of drowning may prove to be an effective family-based intervention to increase swimming physical activity in children.…”

“…Parents also can negatively influence their children's physical activity levels by discouraging or preventing them from participating in physical activities (Boufous, Finch, & Bauman, 2004;Telford, Finch, Barnett, Abbott, & Salmon, 2012). Bou-fous, Finch and Bauman (2004) found that more than 25% of parents discouraged their children from participating in sports or physical activity due to concerns about injury or safety of their children.…”

“…Bou-fous, Finch and Bauman (2004) found that more than 25% of parents discouraged their children from participating in sports or physical activity due to concerns about injury or safety of their children. Telford et al (2012) found a negative association between parents' perceived of risk of injury to their children and the amount of time their children were moderately physically active.…”

The Perceptions of the Best Portuguese Coaches about Dropout and Persistence in Women’s Artistic Gymnasts

“…Moreover, various parents use to express concerns about the risk of injury and other health implications of their daughters' involvement in gymnastics. Curiously, it seems that parental concerns about the risk posed by practicing sport is not exclusive to gymnastics: Boufous, Finch, and Bauman (2004) found that over 25% of parents prevented or discouraged their children, aged 5 to 12 year, from playing a particular sport because of injury and safety concerns. In boys, the most frequently discouraged sport was rugby and Australian Rules football; for girls, the most frequently discouraged activities were rollerblading, rugby and soccer.…”